Father’s Day 2009 – or how did I luck out?

I am hard on Mr. Pete… a lot. A joke between us is that I make Kate Gosselin look like an amateur! And Mr. Pete, good naturedly takes a lot of my needling, nagging and nasty ways.

That all said, I want to take the opportunity to point out that he has grown so much from the scrawny 17 year old I fell in love with over 30 years ago, and has truly become the man that I have needed him to be, and he proves that to me all of the time.

But two times in particular stand out. The first was when he picked up our baby’s casket and carried it down the aisle for his funeral mass.

The second is now. Mr. Pete has helped me with my mom many times over the years. He always made sure she could get in and out of the car and always offered her his arm. Times when I wanted Mama to physically push herself and try harder he would temper me and prod her but always with a smile and sense of humor. In these last few weeks he has been a real comfort. He has prayed the rosary at her bedside with me twice, he has helped adjust mom’s pillows and he always holds the water cup so she can get a drink of water. He does this with gentle kindness. The only other man I remember acting this way towards his mother-in-law is my grandpa. In Pete I have my grandpa back. In love and generosity, humor and good nature he is everything my grandpa ever was to me! Did I know that he would when I married him 30 years ago? or has he become that over time as our marriage has continued and we have added kids and complications to our lives? I don’t know. But when Grandpa gave me away in marriage Mr. Pete certainly accepted the challenge and he has done so magnificently.

Father’s day was modest this year. Such is life, but here are a few scenes from Mr. Pete’s special day.

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